Virtue/Spiritual Names

Prudence, like Hope and Faith, is a Puritan virtue name with a quiet charm and sensitivity that is slowly returning to favor, though it hasn't yet registered on the charts.

A puritan virtue name that's only slightly less challenging than Chastity. It was used for nearly 20 baby girls in the contemporary US in one recent year.

Sounds pretty. But pretentious.

Provocative word name that may strike the right chord for an adventurous baby namer.

Revel is a joyous word name that may appeal to parents wanting a non-traditional Biblical choice or simply a name that expresses how they feel.

Reverie is a strong-sounding word for an ethereal, dreamlike state -- a perfect contrast and meaning for a word that intends to become a first name. Popular mommy blogger Rebecca Woolf of Girls Gone Child named one of her twin daughters Reverie, setting off a groundswell of interest.

Stricter than Peace or Justice.

Mysterious.

Serena, a name used since Roman times, was given fresh life by tennis star Williams, and then again with the leading character on Gossip Girl, Serena van der Woodsen. There have also been Serenas on soap operas and other shows from Bewitched to Law & Order.

A unique virtue name with a sound as happy and lively as its meaning.

Peaceful, calm, and untroubled: these are qualities parents may be hoping for, either on their parenting journey or in their child’s life. The name Serenity encapsulates these hopes, conjuring up a sense of balance, composure, and ease.

The Puritans used it as a virtue name -- but today it would just be considered weird: silence is no longer golden.

Sound contradicts its meaning.

A Puritan-virtue type name that could possibly work for a modern baby with its rhythmic four-syllable sound and admirable meaning.

Spiritual word names are becoming more and more popular – think Peace, Bodhi, Zen and Psalm – and Spirit is among the rarer options, given to a couple dozen baby girls each year in the US. It's the name of the horse in the kids' TV show Spirit.

Not too long ago, Temperance was found only on lists of Puritan baby names.

Could be an unconventional route to Theo.

True has become an accepted first and middle name; Truth makes an even stronger statement. And with nearly 150 baby boys named Truth in the US in the most recent year counted, as many as were named Ross, the word name is edging up on the Top 1000.

With the first name True receiving a Kardashian dose of popularity for girls, Truth is gaining in visibility too. Though its still more popular for boys two to one, the truth is that the name works equally well for both genders -- but may inspire a lot of puns.

Like Verity and Amity, this inclusive virtue name used by the colorful British literary Mitford family is ready to join its more popular peers Hope, Faith, and Grace.